SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - As Marcelo da Luz whizzed through Alaska in his solar car he was spotted by one frantic witness who promptly called the cops declaring there was UFO travelling on the highway.

Police responded by erecting a roadblock, and after some intense questioning da Luz was allowed to continue on his journey.

Since June 2008, the Toronto resident has clocked 35,500 km on the emissions-free, saucer-like vehicle that has carried him from Buffalo, N.Y., past the Arctic Circle to Inuvik last August, then down to Victoria and on to San Francisco. In the process he shattered the Guinness World Record for distance travelled in a sun-powered car, which was 15,070 km.

He's been pulled over by the police more than 20 times and has encountered several freaked-out people as well as some bewildered wolves.

He returned to Inuvik at the end of July, showcasing his vehicle, called xof1, once again at the rec centre to a crowd of awestruck children. That's exactly what he wants. Not only did the Brazilian-born adventurer set out to conquer a world record, but his focus was also on promoting clean and sustainable energy while encouraging others to follow their dreams.

Ken McDonald came out for a look on Friday. An electrician, who currently powers his cabin in part by solar energy, he said he was impresses by da Luz's creation and his passion.

"It's a thing of the future," said McDonald. "If you look at this and see how simple it is, it makes you wonder. I admire what he's doing. I think it's great and there should be more of it."

Da Luz thought about making his cross-continental journey several years ago. As time passed he knew he couldn't wait any longer so he quit his job as an Air Canada flight attendant.

"The pain of not following the dream became unbearable," he said. "I had to do something about it. I had to overcome the hurdle of self doubt."

His homemade vehicle is the product of countless donations and volunteer hours, from University of Toronto engineering students to homemakers to flight attendants to nurses. He travels with a team of volunteers who have followed him along the way in a deteriorating van.

The motor, which is powered by four small batteries, has no transmission, just a throttle on the handlebars that controls speed, which can reach 120 km/h but averages 60 km/h on pavement and a mere 30 km/h along the Dempster. Instead of rear-view mirrors, he wears glasses affixed with an electronic chip that shows what's behind him. The top of the vehicle is covered in solar cells, where the process of transforming the sun's rays into fuel starts.

On a sunny day he can travel for six to eight hours. If there's no sunlight he can only manage two hours of driving. At one point he was stuck in Vancouver for more than a month, waiting for sunshine.

Unlike a regular car, he drives his three-wheeled solar vehicle virtually lying down. Though he's encountered every type of weather and suffered more than a few blowouts during his two trips on the Dempster, he said his adventure has been everything he hoped for.

"It's the most wonderful feeling. I'm driving a car that uses sunlight as fuel, how cool is that? No emissions. It's wonderful. It's a privilege."

He's just about out of money and his journey has ended. But he's hoping someday to drive his solar car to Newfoundland, as well as other countries.

He's thankful he's made it this far. "I feel honoured to follow a dream and to share this with other people."